Aesthetic Practices and Adult Education

Book excerpt: In the past, and over the last decade in particular, the arts and arts spaces have become integral to the research, theory and practice of adult education. This edited volume showcases the possibilities and challenges of work by adult educators in community settings, university classrooms and arts and cultural institutions in Canada, the United States and Europe. The authors share the ways in which they use aesthetic practices to promote human and cultural development, address complex issues such as racism, respect aboriginal knowledge, or simply aim to provide spaces and opportunities to creatively and critically re-imagine the world as a better, fairer and more healthy and sustainable place. This book will benefit educators in universities, communities and art galleries who wish to expand their knowledge and understanding of the arts as tools for change. This book was originally published as a special issue of the International Journal of Lifelong Education.